The optics were checked by Meade and are in good order. I keep the scope in a homemade case.

The 26 mm plossl has a scratch to one side which has had no noticed effect on viewing (no streaks/rays/etc.). The dec motor wire got chopped into pieces once, but I found another cable which works perfectly (i.e. with the right plugs at both ends). The controller's plastic cover over its plug is not real tight any more so one must be careful when removing the plug from the base of the drive or it'll slide off backwards. I expect such could be easily replaced but have never looked into it.

The base accepts computer and encoder input (Meade 9008 system or equivalent software). I have never used this feature so can't speak to its efficacy.